This time we will let our 8th Grade introduce this month’s habit:
Like others of the 7 Habits, I am struck by the paradox of simplicity the habits create. “Think win-win” seems so simple, right? Yes, there are developmental examples where that not might be the case (thinking of my 5 and 8 year-old daughters) and, yes, there are issues that perhaps are not so easily resolved with two winners (someone has to win the basketball game). But as a philosophy? Sure – of course things are best if we viewed challenges as opportunities for everyone to win, not with an inevitable outcome of a winner and a loser. We might not always achieve a full “win-win”, but striving towards it will always yield a kinder result than “winner-takes-all”.
So instead of using this blog to highlight a personal or professional “win-win” of my own, I want to make a brief comment on the power of transferability utilizing the Habits of Kindness between home and school…
Our leadership team is presently reading The Leader in Me, which is the book that helps
schools begin the journey of bringing the 7 Habits into the school. And as we have been reading, we are realizing the broader impacts, particularly the opportunity to strengthen the relationship between school and home. From Chapter 3,
“…observe that the same principles and approach being taught at these schools can also be taught at home. One of the great things about the leadership approach is what it is doing to enhance the parent-school partnership. For starters, it is bringing more parents into the schools to volunteer and support school and classroom activities. But even more important is what is occurring as students apply the principles to their daily tasks and behaviors at home. In other words, it is not just teachers who are reporting better behaviors and reduced discipline issues. Parents are reporting the same kinds of positive results. This is particularly true in families where parents have come to know the principles for themselves and have made conscious efforts to reinforce and teach them…If you are a parent, I promise that if you open your mind to it, you will have endless ideas of how you can apply what these educators are doing to your home.”
Excerpt From: Stephen R. Covey. “The Leader in Me.” iBooks. https://itun.es/us/NPFVw.l
Now that we are a few months in, I do actually see – as a parent – my children beginning to use the language. Eliana will say that she is “being proactive” or that she is “putting first things first” which has definitely allowed her to be better organized. Because we are currently working on “think win-win”, I am hopeful it will have a spillover to our family because I think this attitude could only help siblings navigate the everyday challenges of sharing time, people and stuff in a busy 21st century family.
I have shown examples from our school of how we are putting the Habits of Kindness into effect…
…if you are a parent at MJGDS or Galinsky Academy and you are seeing the impact at home, please offer a quality comment!
…if you are a parent or educator at another school who utilize the 7 Habits, please share your experiences with us so we can continue to improve our implementation here!
We’ll keep sharing our successes and struggles…and if you keep offering advice and feedback…well we just might achieve a “win-win” of our own!
